Joint surgeries and fracture repairs are two of the most common orthopedic procedures. A frequent component of both procedures is the application of traction to a site of interest. For example, traction can be used to separate bones during surgery on joints such as the wrist, ankle, elbow, and knee to facilitate access by arthroscopic instruments. Traction also can be used to position joints for radiography, and/or to align fractured bones of the arm and leg, among others.
Tractive forces traditionally have been applied either manually, by medical personnel pulling on a patient's body, or with the aid of various traction devices. The use of traction devices is an advance over manual traction in that it provides steadier, more finely adjustable traction, with less discomfort for the patient. However, current traction methods are cumbersome, because the available traction towers often restrict access to the site(s) of interest by radiographic or surgical equipment. Thus, a need exists for improved traction tower systems that better facilitate surgery, fracture repair, and/or radiography.